The Turlock Employment Development Department won't be closing – not just yet, at least.

State officials have failed to notify the City of Turlock or Stanislaus County of the branch's impending closure, pushing back the shutdown until at least November.

The state is required to provide a 30-day notice to both the city and county. No such notice has yet been provided.

Despite the brief reprieve, the longterm prospects for Turlock's EDD office remain grim.

“At this point, I don't think we can get them to change their minds,” Turlock Assistant to the City Manager for Housing and Economic Development Maryn Pitt said.

The impending closure was spurred by Gov. Jerry Brown (D), who asked the EDD to cut 15 percent from its budget. The closure of the Turlock office is part of the department's plan to meet that mandate.

The EDD has operated a Turlock branch for at least 60 years, 35 in its current location.

Turlock has been fighting to save its EDD office, which serves locals and those from as far away as Newman and Patterson. Once the office closes, Turlockers will be forced to drive to Modesto or Merced for EDD services.

The city has called in the services of State Sen. Anthony Cannella (R-Ceres) and Assemblywoman Kristen Olsen (R-Turlock), both of whom have attempted to save the office. The City of Turlock has even contacted the GoBiz economic development group within the Governor's office, pleading the city's case.

“Here we are trying to do job creation, and we aren't getting any help,” Pitt said.

Though GoBiz “put some pressure” on the EDD, a reversal of the closure seems unlikely.

However, through discussions with Cannella's office, there appears to be a possibility of siting one of the EDD's One-Stop Career Centers in Turlock, offering an even broader variety of services in the future.

In the meantime, the county's Alliance Worknet, a workforce development effort, is in search of new Turlock offices. Alliance Worknet currently shares offices with the EDD.